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Home > Family > Kids With Active Friends May Be Healthier Than Those Without

Kids With Active Friends May Be Healthier Than Those Without

by Erica Loop on June 01, 2012

Erica Loop

About the Author

Erica Loop is the mom to one energetic son, as well as an arts educator and freelance writer. She enjoys visiting museums, crafts, and taking karate classes with her 10-year-old. Erica has written articles on children&#8217;s activities, education, crafts, and interior design for websites and companies such as education.com, eHow, Bounty Paper Towels, and Pampers.

About the Blog

WhatToExpect.com supports Word of Mom as a place to share stories and highlight the many perspectives and experiences of pregnancy and parenting. However, the opinions expressed in this section are those of individual writers and do not reflect the views of Heidi Murkoff of the What to Expect brand.

A new study from the Vanderbilt School of Medicine shows that kids who have physically active friends tend to be more active and healthier than those who don't. As the mother to an active 10-year-old who occasionally seems to flicker back and forth between loving and hating exercise, I can say that I fully agree with this new study's results.

The study followed 81 kids between the ages of five- and 12-years old for 12 weeks. Each child was enrolled in one of two after-school programs. Researchers used an accelerometer, an instrument that measures muscle movements, to determine the activity level of each child for the duration of the programs, and then compared the individual children's activity levels to the levels of their friends.

According to Time, lead researcher Sabina Gessell noted that, "We see evidence that the children are mirroring, emulating or adjusting to be similar to their friends." Many moms, myself included, often struggle to get kids interested in exercise programs, especially when there are so many video games, computers, and apps vying for attention. It's encouraging to see proof that a few active friends may have a decidedly positive impact on overall physical health and well-being — whether it's through a sporting league, after-school classes, or simply free play.

Because exercise is so beneficial to kids, I would gladly see my son outside playing basketball, enjoying a game of soccer, or simply riding a bike up and down the street instead sitting in front of the TV. Like this study points out, when my son is closer to kids that enjoy these (and other similar) pursuits, he too is much more open to exercising.

Does this mean that all moms should push our little ones to befriend the soon-to-be star quarterback? That's taking it to an extreme, but helping your child to engage in active social situations is a more realistic option. It isn't easy (and sometimes impossible) to pick your child's friends, but you can sign your preschooler up for a community soccer league or invite the neighborhood kids over for a game of basketball or flag football as a start.